Top Ten
by Empress Empoleon
Summary: Mirajane, annoyed at the guild's complete failures at romance, decides that she needs to take a more direct approach in order to get love through their thick heads. But when she posts a list of the guild's Top Ten couples (anonymously, of course) everybody's lives are changed. Will our favorite Fairy Tail members win or lose at the tricky game of love?
1. The List

Mira bustled around the bar, getting the food and alcohol ready for the day. It looked like her normal start to the day, and the early birds of the guild didn't see anything wrong.

However, anyone who looked closely would have seen the large frown and deep creases on her face, and saw how her eyes flashed angrily whenever certain people walked in.

Mira was annoyed. Extremely annoyed. For so long, she had been providing free relationship help and love advice to all, and giving her shoulder for everybody to cry on, and yet, not a single couple had blossomed in Fairy Tail.

Everyday, she worked and served people, and talked to them about their life, usually ending up at dating and crushes at some point. From some, she got a couple confessions _("Juvia loves Gray-sama!") _while others, she had just given up on after a while, _("Love? Who needs love when you can fight?") _but that wasn't the point; she had been acting as Fairy Tail's self-proclaimed therapist, and nothing was coming from her efforts.

She was irritated. She was _mad. _But, more than anything, Mira wanted things to work out.

So, she decided, that she'd need to take a more…_direct _approach.

* * *

The next morning, many people were met with a nasty surprise.

Lucy and Natsu shoved open the doors of the guild and walked in together, quarreling as usual, _("Natsu, why did you go through my lingerie!?" "Linguini?") _to see a huge crowd of people around a pillar.

"Is Erza fighting the pillar again?" Lucy wondered aloud, pushing through the people to see what exactly they were looking at. Meanwhile, Natsu was throwing fire punches left and right, clearing out people so he could get through.

Lucy finally stumbled through, and saw messy scrawl on a small slip of paper tacked up to the pillar.

She glanced at the title. _Top Ten Couples of Fairy Tail. _What? Her eyes began to wander from the bottom of the list (where it said _"GET TOGETHER ALREADY YOU ASSES!" _in big huge letters along with saying "_From a Friend"_) and up, searching for answers.

* * *

_10. Fried and Laxus_

"WHO THE HELL DID THIS? I AM GOING TO FUCKING KILL THIS FUCKING PERSON AND FUCKING ELECTROCUTE THEM! THEY ARE IMPLYING THAT I'M FUCKING GAY!" Laxus roared, his body cackling with lightning. "AND WHY THE HELL WITH FRIED?"

In quite a contrast to his partner, Fried just sighed dejectedly. Glancing at Mirajane, he sighed, his eyes lingering on her. _I guess it's not meant to be._

* * *

_9. Macao and Cana_

Macao choked on his drink, while Cana almost dropped her barrel. (And what a catastrophe that would have been.)

"M-Me a-and h-her?" Macao sputtered out, while Wakaba slapped him on the back. "No way! She's just my drinking buddy."

Wakaba shoved Macao slightly. "At least you have a girl. This mysterious person didn't bother to pair me up with anyone."

"Me and that lightweight? Please," Cana remarked, taking a long swig from her drink. "He's not even remotely cute."

"Excuse me?" Macao retorted. "You insulting my looks? And even worse, my drinking?"

"Hell yeah I am."

"Oh, it's on." Macao grabbed his mug. "Try me."

* * *

_8. Loke And Aries_

Lucy's eyes widened in disbelief. _Loke and Aries? _They were her celestial spirits, for crying out loud! Clearly, this anonymous person had not left _anybody _unscathed.

Though, she had to admit, they would be a really cute couple. And, they were already really good friends...not to mention, Loke had stood up for Aries a number of times before.

Lucy smiled softly. She wondered how the two would react when they saw this.

* * *

_7. Romeo and Wendy_

"Eh?" Romeo drawled out, staring up at the list above him.

_Wendy...Wendy..._Try as he might, Romeo simply could not remember who Wendy was.

Meanwhile, Wendy was hovering above everybody (via. Carla) to see the list. _("Oh, if only I wasn't so short!)_

"Me and...Romeo?" Wendy mumbled, blood rushing to her cheeks. "I-I, w-well, I've never really thought of love yet, but..." Wendy fumbled over her words, struggling to to put what she wanted to say into words.

Carla attempted to comfort her, but then gasped and almost dropped her at what she read next.

"Carla!" Wendy exclaimed, hanging onto the edge of her white tail with both hands. "Why did you do that?"

Carla just shuddered.

* * *

_6. Happy and Carla_

Happy dropped his fish in excitement. "It's fate! It's destiny! Me and Carla together...forever!" He twirled around and up into the air in a happy, oblivious bubble, instantly popped by Carla.

"Male Cat!" Happy's warm and fuzzy mind dimly registered Carla behind him, sharply calling him what she used to when she didn't like him that much..._huh?_

Carla hit Happy on the head hard. "Ow! What was that for? Happy moaned, catching himself in midair.

"Don't you think for even one second," Carla seethed, "that we are a couple. We're not, and we will never be. The most you'll ever be to me is a friend."

"Well most of the time, he's even less than that," she mumbled, flying away with Wendy in tow.

Happy stared at her receding back through his slightly bleary eyes. (He was _not _crying! He just got some...dust in his eyes.)

Somehow, her words had hurt more than her slap.

* * *

_5. Elfman and Evergreen_

"Me and that buffoon?! Oh, come on! It was just a tactic to win against Mirajane, nothing more than that!" Evergreen loudly proclaimed.

"EVERGREEN IS NOT MANLY!" Elfman bellowed, pounding a fist into a nearby table and shattering it.

"I'm a girl, you moron!" Evergreen snapped.

Elfman then proceeded to thump around the guild, yelling "manly" nonsense and breaking numerous pieces of furniture. Evergreen's eyes softened infinitesimally before hardening again.

* * *

_4. Gajeel and Levy_

"Shorty here? No way." Gajeel snorted. "I wouldn't even be able to fit my-"

Levy screeched at that exact moment, censoring him off and flushing a bright red. "This is not happening to me!"

"Damn straight it isn't. You think I would waste my time with you?" Gajeel said. Levy glanced up at him (_How was he so tall?) _before letting her eyes fall to the floor to stare at her shoes.

_He probably likes them tall, busty, sexy, big..._Levy decided, involuntarily looking at Lucy. _Why would he ever like the tiny, petite Levy?_

She chuckled under her breath. It was silly for her to ever hope from the beginning. She and Gajeel...would _never _happen.

Ever.

* * *

_3. Jellal and Erza_

Erza glared at that particular line, a dark and murderous aura emitting from her. Guild members stepped back (thirty foot radius) as she unsheathed her sword.

"Who. Did. This?" Erza stepped forward. "Who had the nerve...to try to toy with me like this?"

"Well it won't work!" Erza stabbed the pillar slightly below the list, the frail piece of paper fluttering. "I do not love Jellal! We are just friends!"

"Not to mention he isn't even in the guild...what kind of dumbass came up with that?" Erza said, stepping back and putting her sword back. "I don't even know where Jellal is, since he escaped..." Erza stood there for a few more seconds in a stony silence, her shoulders hunched over and her back towards everybody.

_Jellal...where are you? _Erza shook the thought off, turning around.

"I need cake." She stormed off to the bar, where Mirajane had already placed a slice of strawberry cake.

* * *

_2. Gray and Juvia_

"Oh crap." Those were the last words Gray uttered before getting mauled by a rabid Juvia.

"_Gray-sama Juvia loves you so much and Juvia knew this day would come when you would love Juvia back and Juvia wants a wedding in the rain with a blue dress-" _Gray tried to shake her off frantically, but to no avail. She clung onto him tightly, hugging him from behind and her fingers brushing his toned chest. (Gray had obviously stripped again.)

Gray shivered. _I'm an Ice mage. Why the hell did I just shiver? _

Gray was suddenly scared.

_Very _scared.

* * *

Lucy sighed in relief. On a list of ten couples, she wasn't in nine of them, and there was seriously no chance of her being in the top one, so why worry anymore?

She literally had a heart attack when she read the number one couple in Fairy Tail.

_1. Natsu and Lucy_

In those three simple words, her world changed.

* * *

_Me and...NATSU? I don't like Natsu! He's just nakama, my best friend! Well, he does occasionally sleep in my bed...no! Bad Lucy!_

"Lucy...what the hell are you doing?" Natsu asked, and Lucy found that she was actually slapping herself.

"Nothing," she replied sourly. Her cheeks felt hot all of a sudden, and for some reason, her eyes refused to look at Natsu.

"Lucy, what's wrong?" Natsu asked. Lucy's shoulders tensed. _How could he not know what's wrong? Can he even read? _

Lucy whirled around to give him a piece of her mind, but her voice stopped working, and she found herself oddly staring at his abs, which were exactly the same as before, except...better. She didn't know how, but they just _were._

Lucy stuttered, biting her lip. _I don't like Natsu. He's only my best friend, nothing more-_

"N-Natsu," Lucy said, her voice coming out like a whisper. _What the hell is wrong with me? _

"Huh? What was that?"

"Natsu," Lucy said a little louder. Natsu turned to her expectantly. Lucy looked up into his onyx eyes. _When was he ever so...tall? And...somewhat good looking?_

(Lucy choked on her own thoughts, if that was even possible.)

"Natsu, the um...list over there...you know, it says that we...we..." Though it was a valiant attempt, Lucy still wasn't able to talk right.

"Oh, that?" Natsu laughed and Lucy pouted. "Don't tell me you actually took that seriously?!"

Lucy faltered slightly. _Oh. Right. Of course, why should I take that seriously? Natsu is my best friend. This is just some stupid prank, it doesn't matter._

"Of course not!" Lucy exclaimed, grinning widely. "It's just a sick joke."

Natsu laughed and went to pick up a mission after Lucy had to remind him that her rent was almost due. When she couldn't see him anymore, she let out a breath she didn't know she was holding.

She smiled at herself. _I don't like Natsu. Who am I kidding? He's just my best friend and my teammate. _

Putting the whole incident in the back of her mind, she walked away from the pillar, away from the chaos, away from those three words that turned her life upside down.

_Natsu and Lucy._

* * *

Mirajane bent over to grab some more drinks. As she did, she grinned.

Her plan was working perfectly. The reactions were exactly as she planned, and she could already see the wheels setting into motion.

Yes, Fairy Tail would have ten new couples soon. Mirajane chuckled discreetly while handing out the booze.

_Oh yeah, I'm good._


	2. The Effects

It was now that lazy time in the afternoon, when you just had lunch a couple hours ago, but you were already getting hungry, (unless you were Natsu, of course, who is always hungry) and the hot sunshine flooding into the guild made you just want to close your eyes and take a nap.

Now that all the pandemonium from the list had died down, the true effects were being revealed. Honestly, Mirajane was surprise at some.

She had been a little wrong in her predictions. And that could prove to be disastrous.

* * *

After Laxus' explosion, the Thunder God Tribe had been focused on restraining and calming him down. They were still all huddled in the corner, whispering among themselves about the new developments.

Bickslow sighed. "How come all of you guys got paired up, but not me? I'm attractive, right?!"

Evergreen looked him up and down incredulously. "Have you ever looked at yourself in a mirror?" Bickslow promptly ignored her.

"I still can't believe that this person thought I was gay. Do I act gay?" Laxus asked seriously. The members thought for a moment, before shaking their heads vigorously when he began to glare.

"And that I had the hots for Fried? Please!" Laxus continued, putting an arm around him. "He's just my teammate and a close friend."

Fried softly agreed before lifting Laxus' arm off of him. "This was all just really stupid."

The other three murmured their agreement. They continued to discuss, but Fried's thoughts slipped away and towards a certain white-haired barmaid.

_I really did like you, Mirajane...but I guess that you don't like me back, seeing as how this person was right about every couple except me and Laxus, and didn't bother to put me with you. _

_I don't like Laxus like that..._Fried glanced at Laxus, who was animatedly talking to Bickslow. _But, I still like you._

_I'll wait for you._

* * *

Of course, Mirajane didn't have the slightest hint that Fried liked her at all in the first place, which was a huge mistake on her part.

Either way, she was attending to more important matters-like supplying the alcohol for Cana and Macao's drinking contest. _Boy, _were they going at it.

A crowd had developed, people cheering for both sides as the contest raged on. Both looked equal still at this point (just passing the ten mug mark) but, if Mirajane squinted, she thought she saw Macao panting lightly.

(That is, if she squinted _really _hard. Both were such good drinkers, this was definitely going to be close.)

"Bet on the winners here!" And suddenly, Mirajane became a bookie handling all sorts of bets, for Cana, Macao, and a tie. Mirajane went for Cana.

Around thirty mugs was when you could see the effects. Fifteen mugs was about one barrel, so Cana was still going strong, with her average being about five barrels a day. However, Macao, who only drank out of mugs, was beginning to chug it slower and gulp more as he drank.

Thirty one...thirty two...the pair kept going, and Mirajane could see the determination in their eyes, the special Fairy Tail glint they had to _keep going and whoop your ass while I'm at it. _Not only that, Macao's eyes kept shifting toward Cana, not focusing as much on the drink.

(Yes, Mirajane knew that he was somewhat of a pervert, proved by why he usually stared at her chest area. If it got really bad she would have step in, she decided.)

Maybe it was fifty mugs-or fifty one, perhaps-when Macao's eyes rolled into the back of his head and he slumped back in his chair, letting out a loud belch. He held up a hand to signal that he was done. People cheered, people booed, and Mirajane had money flowing in and out of her hands. (She gained quite a nice sum from Cana-a good thousand Jewels.)

Cana finished and set her mug down, smirking at the defeated Macao. "Who's the better drinker now?"

Macao just grunted.

* * *

"Open the Gate of the Lion! Leo! Open the Gate of the Ram! Aries!"

In two glowing orbs of light, Lucy's two loyal spirits appeared, Loke on her right and Aries on her left.

"Hello, Lucy. Pretty as ever, I see," Loke smoothly remarked, and Lucy's cheeks tinted red.

"_Sumimasen!" _Aries bleated. "How are you, Lucy?"

After Lucy engaged in some small chat with Aries, (promptly ignoring all of Loke's flirting) Lucy decided to gradually bring up _the list._

"So, are you guys good friends?" Lucy innocently asked.

The two looked at each other, before Loke laughed and Aries giggled. "Guess you could say that."

"Are you sure you're not..._just _friends?"

Aries' eyes became wide, and she shook her head mutely, blushing furiously.

Meanwhile, Loke furrowed her eyebrows. "What do you mean?"

Lucy almost slammed her head into the table. _Of course. The girl he _actually _likes, he's completely oblivious about. _

(Her thoughts then somehow drifted to Natsu at that point, though she wasn't sure why.)

Lucy prodded. "You know..._more than friends?_"

At this, Loke sputtered on his spit. "What? Lucy!" His ears turned slightly red, and this did not escape Lucy's attention.

Lucy smile sheepishly. "Well, I mean, you _did _almost _die _for her, and you're close friends, so you'd think-"

"Lucy!" Loke stood up angrily. "You know the only girl I like is you! I'll only love you forever and ever! Aries is my friend. I don't even understand why you called me. Don't do this again." With that, he was gone in a poof, in a very moody forced gate closure.

Lucy's eyes gazed sadly at the spot where he had just been standing. _Well, it was worth a try._

Aries remained though. "Lucy..._Sumimasen_!"

"You like him, don't you?" Lucy assumed. Aries slowly nodded, embarrassed.

Lucy chuckled, patting her on the back. "He'll come around eventually." Aries smiled softly at this, before fading away in a shimmering golden light.

* * *

_I can do this! I can do this! I can-_

Wendy was almost there, hand reached out toward him. She saw the back of Romeo's head, him animatedly talking to Natsu...

_I can't do this! _Wendy squeaked, losing all of her courage, and ran to sit in a chair on the far end of the guild, away from him.

Even though it had only been a few hours since the list had been posted, Wendy was sure that she was _in love _with Romeo. In the true spirit of immaturity, twelve year old Wendy couldn't help but let her imagination get the better of herself.

She knew in her heart that it was meant to be-that fate had destined for her to join Fairy Tail just to meet the _true _love of her life, Romeo. He was her Prince Charming, and she was the princess locked up in the tower, waiting to be saved from the horrible dragon...

(Technically Wendy would actually _be _the dragon due to her Slayer abilities, but she decided to ignore that fact.)

And his name was Romeo; a bonus! She could be his Juliet! (That was really cheesy, but Wendy didn't care about that either.)

But even though her heart was on fire, as all childish crushes work, she didn't have the courage to go and tell him.

It always had seemed like not a big deal to Wendy; to just go and talk to your crush. (Well, she had never really _had _one, but that was beside the point.) That was why whenever she had heard the other girls in the guild lamenting over this, she laughed.

It was just talking. How hard could it be?

Well, now Wendy knew just how.

* * *

"_Carla!" _Happy moaned for the umpteenth time. Carla pivoted on her paw to face him, her tail slapping his face.

"Male-cat! What you're doing is so degrading. Please stop," Carla said in a harsh monotone before flying away toward Wendy.

Happy slumped on the floor in defeat. He had done so much, yet she _still _didn't want him. What exactly would he have to do to deserve her?

In the course of a few hours, he had tried giving her fish five times_, _(each time refused and flopped onto his face) tried hinting at love toward her seventeen times, (every single time ending with a slap in the face) and even holding her hand _once _(and that was the last time he would do something as fatal as _that)._

So, Happy's primitive mind began to conclude that maybe it wasn't him undeserving of her...

Maybe it was that _she _wasn't good enough to deserve _him._

* * *

_Ugh, stupid Happy. Stupid, stupid, stupid Happy. _Carla sat near a trembling Wendy (she didn't even bother, all she could talk about now was her gushing love for Romeo) and looked in the complete opposite direction of the blithering Happy.

Her eyes landed on Pantherlily, rambling something off to a Gajeel who was clearly not listening, instead looking at...Levy? Carla rubbed her eyes to make sure she wasn't seeing things.

Yep, he was outright staring at Levy, and Carla smiled before turning back to the animated Pantherlily.

She traveled up his form, eventually ending at his sharp, chiseled face. She imagined him in his battle form and felt the blood rush to her face.

That male Exceed was _hot. _And though Carla didn't like to admit it, she did _maybekindasorta _like him.

"What were you looking at anyway?" Pantherlily suddenly looked her way, and Carla's head turned so fast that she could have gotten whiplash.

* * *

Elfman and Evergreen sat together at the bar (suspiciously close, Mirajane noted) while bickering their usual nonsense.

"Love is not manly!" Elfman announced, refusing to look at the petite Evergreen next to him.

Evergreen pulled at her auburn hair. "Elfman, I don't _love _you! How stupid is that?"

(The Thunder God Tribe could be seen discreetly eavesdropping on the conversation at this point.)

Elfman turned toward her, his ears a little red. (Mirajane swore it, but no one believed her. Elfman, blushing? _Puh-lease._) "Evergreen..."

"What?" she snapped, looking up to his face and her cheeks tinting a slight pink. _Dammit, I'm blushing! Around this idiot too!_

"That was all just a ploy against Mirajane, right?" Elfman asked, a hint of sadness in his voice that Evergreen, unfortunately, did not pick up on.

"Of course it was, and nothing more. We are not in love, and this list was just a mean prank," Evergreen confirmed.

Elfman glanced down at the table, away from her piercing eyes (literally). It was something so unlike him that Mirajane almost asked if he was okay.

But she didn't need to, because the eerie silence was gone as soon as it had come, with him saying something "manly" and slamming his drink onto the bar counter, its contents sloshing over the edge and onto Evergreen's dress.

The scream that resulted was nearly earsplitting, and Mirajane knew that her younger brother would never hear the end of _this._

* * *

Levy sat across from Lucy at one of the guild's tables. Lucy was furiously scribbling down words for her next chapter, and Levy was waiting impatiently to read it.

But while she waited, she thought. And each thought hurt her more than the last.

She recalled what had happened this morning. So Gajeel had rejected her. (Quite cruelly, she might add.)

Of course he didn't _know _that she liked him-she had barely just admitted that she had a crush on the man to _herself. _

But she should have seen it coming. He was everything she wasn't. They were such opposites that they couldn't even attract.

Levy had set her hopes too high.

And she hated herself for it.

* * *

Gajeel was sitting alone at a table with Pantherlily. The Exceed was going on and on about something the Slayer _didn't give a fuck about_, so Gajeel had just tuned out.

Originally, he was just sipping his iron smoothie, (a new concoction from Mirajane that was pure _genius_) but somehow, his eyes had found their way to a certain blue-haired bookworm and he couldn't make himself turn away.

Gajeel couldn't figure out why, for the life of him. Why the hell was he looking at Levy?

He didn't know. For some reason, he didn't really care either.

"Gajeel!"

"Eh?" Gajeel said, his eyes quickly averting back to Pantherlily.

"Were you even listening to what I was saying?! What were you looking at anyway?"

As Pantherlily scolded him, Gajeel rooted his eyes to his gray drink.

He was _not_ going to stare at Levy again.

* * *

Erza began to eat her tenth slice of strawberry cake with a very serious expression. Mirajane had concluded that she was binge eating over the loss of Jellal a while ago, and decided not to interfere.

This whole list had gotten Erza thinking about Jellal again. She had managed to banish him from her thoughts before, but now he was back in full force. Childhood memories in the Tower of Heaven, her painful reunion with him again on the Tower, meeting him again on the Oración Seis mission...it was all coming back to her.

As the memories came and went, they left a hole in her heart, something deeper than a stab of her sword could ever do. It grew deeper and deeper until it almost began to gnaw at her very soul.

_I miss Jellal. _Erza sighed, pushing the cake away in a gesture very unlike her. _Where did you go?_

_Maybe I should go find him._

* * *

Juvia giggled, leaning her head on Gray's shoulder. Gray didn't even try shrugging her off this time.

Juvia had been _very _clingy. Gray could give a first-hand account on how she sipped the same drink as him, played with his hair, and even tried to accompany him to the bathroom. _("Juvia swears she won't look!")_

Not to mention that she even tried to drag him to _the broom closet _ when no one was looking. Mavis, was that scary. He almost blasted her with an Ice Cannon trying to get away from her grasp.

(_The_ _broom closet _was the legendary broom closet in which Mirajane had locked Bisca and Alzack in when they still hadn't gotten together after so long. When they came out, they were a new couple-rumors said they actually _did it _in there. Nobody actually knows, but they did have Asuka so...Mirajane had never even gone in there since that incident anyways, so people just stayed away.)

"Juvia loves Gray-sama so much," Juvia said, snuggling into the nape of his neck. Gray shuddered as her warm lips barely brushed his cold skin.

_What the hell! _Gray was so shocked at his reaction that he abruptly stood up, overturning the table and everything on it as a result.

"Gray...sama?" Juvia slowly asked, but Gray just stormed away, rubbing the back of his neck.

* * *

Mirajane observed the chaos happening all over the guild. Everything seemed to be going okay...

Until Lisanna approached her.

"Mirajane..." And suddenly her younger sister had turned into a sobbing mess in front of her.

"Shh, shh, it's okay." Mirajane bustled around her, mumbling sweet nothings and stroking her hair.

"It's just that...I'm not meant to be with Natsu after all..." Mirajane froze.

_Oh, fuck._

Lisanna hiccupped sadly. "This matchmaker doesn't think so...nobody thinks so..."

Mirajane mentally turned Satan Soul on herself. How, _oh how,_ could she have forgotten that her own _sister _had the biggest crush on Natsu!? _How? _And then she put him as the _top couple _with Lucy!_ What have I fucking done?!_

She unintentionally hurt Lisanna. _And no blooming relationship is worth that._

"Natsu is so oblivious...but I thought that he was my husband!" Lisanna was rambling nonsense now, blubbering into Mirajane's skirt.

"Lisanna! I know Natsu likes you back, so stop crying." The words were out her mouth before she could stop herself. "This person is so stupid. It's obvious the two of you are meant to be."

"Really? You think so?" Lisanna beamed at her, but Mirajane felt like grabbing Erza's sword and murdering herself.

She had messed it up even more. She was telling Lisanna that she had a chance with Natsu when she herself was the one to have set said boy up with Lucy.

How could she choose between her own little sister and true love?

* * *

"That's it." Erza stood up abruptly, ignoring the half eaten cake slice on the plate in front of her. "I'm going to go looking for him."

"What?" Lucy, who was sitting next to her, choked on her drink. "Looking for who?"

"Jellal," Erza answered. "It's been a long time since I've last heard of him. I want to make sure he's okay."

"Okay..." Lucy said. "This isn't about the list, is it?"

Erza shook her head. "No. I've been thinking about it for a while. It just reminded me."

Lucy stood up, pushing her bar seat in. "Okay, I'll get my stuff ready and-"

"No Lucy." The blonde stopped in her tracks, looking at Erza with wide eyes. "This is something I have to do alone. I'm sorry."

Lucy smirked. "It's okay, I understand." _Erza likes Jellal! I _knew _it!_

Erza sent her a death glare before stalking away. Lucy chuckled softly to herself before returning to her drink.

* * *

"Hey! Lucy!"

Lucy grinned, turning to face her best friend. "Hey."

"So I found this really easy mission close by with a good reward. It's just to catch these wizards who steal farmer's animals, down in Acalypha. We could get there before nightfall if we leave now, so go get Gray and-"

"Natsu." Lucy stood up, interrupting his explanation. "Erza's not coming."

"What?"

"Erza's not coming," Lucy repeated, slowly.

"Why?" Natsu plopped down into a seat in deep thought, something so comical that Lucy almost laughed.

Natsu then slammed his fist into his head in a eureka moment. "I know! She's scared that she won't be able to beat me!" Natsu laughed like a maniac, ordering some beer from a _very close almost like she was eavesdropping _Mirajane.

"That doesn't even make sense, genius." Lucy sat back down. "Natsu, what I mean is-"

"What she means is that I won't be coming." Erza came up from behind, and the two of them whirled around in surprise. "I have other important...business to attend to."

Natsu raised an eyebrow. "Business? Like what?"

"That's none of your _business._"

"Yeah, it is, because you're part of the team and as the leader, I have a right to know."

"And since when were _you _the leader?"

"Since always! I was the one who made the team, and the team is fucking _named _after me, so-"

"Well, last time I checked, I'm the one who's always saving your ass on missions."

"Oh, you wanna go?" Natsu stood up and flames shot out from his clenched hand. "'Cause that's where this is going, bitch."

"Oh no you _did not _just go there." And suddenly it was an all out fight between Natsu and Era, and Lucy shrieked and had to jump out of the way before her head almost got cut off by one of Erza's _very sharp and pointy _swords.

* * *

Later on, after Makarov blasted the two apart, Erza left in a stony silence, towing her large luggage storage behind her. Natsu didn't even watch her leave, and Erza didn't look back.

"Now what?" Lucy asked. "We don't have a fourth member."

"We don't need one. This is an easy mission. I think just the three of us can handle it," Natsu said.

"I don't know..." Lucy replied. "What if-"

"Oh come on! We're just fighting a couple bandits. We could do this in our sleep!" Natsu interjected.

"Sorry, we're going to be taking him." Natsu wrenched Gray out of Juvia's grasp (while grabbing his nearby shirt) and started dragging him and Lucy (who noted that his hand was quite soft and warm) to the door.

"Wait!" Juvia stood up and ran over to them. "If you're missing Erza, how about Juvia comes instead?"

Natsu shrugged, and Lucy smiled. "Why not?" Juvia squealed and reattached herself to Gray, causing the Ice Mage to groan and send a pleading look at Natsu (who ignored him).

Lisanna then walked over to them. "Can I come too? I'm a little low on money too right now." She winked discreetly at Mirajane, who forced a smile and then proceeded to bang her head on the wine shelves.

"Of course!" Natsu exclaimed, slinging an arm around Lisanna, who blushed. "You're my best friend!"

For a split second, Lucy felt something pang in her heart. _But _I'm _Natsu's best friend. Not Lisanna, me._

But it was gone as soon as it came, and Lucy put the thought away in a deep and dark corner of her mind as she walked out the door with her three-no four-teammates.

* * *

A/N:** I would like to thank all the people in advance who have already reviewed, subscribed, and favorited. **I appreciate it, as this is my first Fairy Tail multi-chaptered story. Speaking of which, if you're reading this and not planning on reviewing, please don't. The review button needs some friends.


	3. The Mission

The sun was disappearing below the horizon in a hazy orange glow by the time the five of them reached Acalypha.

Gray looked down onto a map. "The farm is pretty close to here. If we go fast, we'll be able to stay there for the night and catch the thieves red handed."

Juvia giggled. _Gray-sama is so smart!_

Natsu pumped his fists up in the air. "All right! Let's go!"

"I don't know..." Lucy snatched the map from Gray, and Juvia gasped. "It's a couple miles from here."

"Enh. We can make it." And with that, Natsu set off, with Lisanna right beside him, chatting with him. Gray followed, and Juvia latched onto him.

Lucy was all alone at the end of the group. And she _did not _like the feeling _one bit._

_I'm usually the one talking to Natsu like that..._Lucy thought, looking at Natsu laugh at something Lisanna said _that was probably very witty and smart and amazing. _

_I'm never the loner...even Gray is talking to Juvia. _Right in front of her, even with Juvia clinging onto him, he was still able to enjoy a friendly conversation with the blue-haired girl.

_I'm never alone. _Lucy bit her lip so hard it turned white, and looked up at the red sky.

_But why does it feel this bad?_

* * *

The five of them trooped through the thick foliage of the dark forest, numerous bugs chirping and owls hooting.

Lucy was still at the end of the group, and while nobody was talking anymore, she still felt insecure. Usually her teammates would all be around her, almost like a protective bubble-

_Lucy, you can do this. You need to get stronger. You can't even walk alone._

And Natsu. He was always like a constant furnace next to her; she was feeling unusually _frigid _without him. She shivered and tucked her arms close to her as she continued to walk.

A harsh gust of wind suddenly blew by, and Lucy ducked her head as her blonde hair whipped around her and the cold air seeped through her light jacket. When it was over, she looked up-

Only to see a pair of glowing, cat-like yellow eyes staring at her from the depths of the vegetation and _oh my Mavis, they did not just blink-_

Lucy quickly looked away only to find another set of eyes peering at her from within the leaves of a tree. She glanced away again-to see yet another pair from a bush a little ways away from her.

Before the blonde knew what was happening, she was completely surrounded by these eyes that _seemed to stare into her very soul. _She shrieked loudly.

"Lucy?" All of her friends turned around, but Natsu was the one to ask. "What's wrong?"

Lucy took a step back hesitantly, her brown eyes darting around anxiously to meet all these other eyes that the others couldn't seem to notice. She stepped on a twig that cracked unbelievably loudly and reverberated through the quiet, tense atmosphere.

"Lucy." Natsu stepped toward her, closing the distance until he was literally right in front of her. She was staring at the ground, away from the eyes, and couldn't see his face, but she guessed (or maybe, _hoped_) that it was full of worry for her.

"Nat-" Suddenly, large pawed hands reached out and grabbed the girl. "Mmph!"

Lucy was being pulled into the shrubbery by a thing with rough hands and glowing yellow eyes and she was _fucking scared. _The Mage couldn't reach her Gate Keys dangling _ever so close _at her waist, or her whip. She tried biting the hand, but the skin was too rough.

"Lucy!" Natsu lunged toward her. Vines were seeming to tangle around Lucy and pull her in even faster as she reached out toward him.

Natsu would never forget Lucy's expression when she got sucked in-raw fear and scared chocolate eyes screaming for help.

* * *

_I couldn't save Lucy._

Natsu dropped to his knees, his hand still reaching for something that was gone. "LUCY!" he roared, his voice full of pain.

_I couldn't save Lucy. I let Lucy down. Lucy. _Natsu got up slowly. _Lucy could fucking die now because I made a stupid mistake. _The Dragon Slayer burst into flames, lighting up the surrounding forest and his teammates' forlorn faces.

"Natsu-" Gray began, but the Ice Make Mage was pushed out of the way as Natsu pummeled down the dirt path through the forest.

"You two keep going to the farm, I'll go after him," Lisanna said, changing into Animal Soul: Bird and flying off after Natsu. Gray sighed before turning to Juvia.

"Does Juvia see Gray thinking about Lucy?" Juvia asked threateningly, and her blue eyes seemed to light up.

"No!" Gray denied furiously. Mavis, he was _scared _of this girl.

"Uh..I guess you should stay close to me," Gray said, before quickly adding, "I don't want you getting taken either."

But that was enough for Juvia. She squealed and hugged him from behind.

"Hey, don't get any ideas," Gray said.

"Juvia knows," the water girl said, giggling.

_I'm only doing this so she doesn't get kidnapped like Lucy. No other reason, _Gray told himself. _This is just to keep Juvia safe. It's not like I _like _her or anything._

And Gray did such a good job of convincing himself that he didn't even see what he walked the two of them into.

* * *

Natsu's feet pounded down the gravel, kicking up clouds of dust as he dashed down the path. _Lucy, I'm coming!_

"Natsu! Wait up!" He could hear Lisanna's voice frantically calling him off in the distance, but right now, he couldn't stop for anything.

"NATSU!" Before he knew what was happening, Lisanna was in front of him in Animal Soul: Cheetah, and had halted him right in his tracks. He was pressing forward on her slightly from the quick stop, and she was leaning back, their chests squeezing together painfully.

Lisanna's breath quickened. This was exactly what she had been waiting for her whole life, exactly what she dreamed of every night. _Could it be? Is he going to-_

But the instant was gone as quick as it had come, and Natsu had already left her behind.

Lisanna sighed. _Why Lucy?_

_Why not me?_

* * *

"We got a good haul today-oh, _shit!_"

Gray and Juvia burst through the bushes only to find _the thieves themselves, _dressed in all black and levitating some knocked out cows through air magic.

"Are you the ones who've been stealing farmer's animals?" Gray asked, getting into an offensive stance. There were two of them, and they didn't seem like very strong mages.

"So what if we are?" one of them said, standing up and leaving the floating cow all up to his partner. Gray presumed he was the leader of the two.

"Give back all that you stole now, and we won't have to hurt you," Gray growled menacingly, taking a step forward.

"Make me." Without warning, the man in black jumped and shot an ice spear at Gray. Gray got out of the way just in time.

"Oh, so you're an Ice Make wizard too, huh? Well, I'll show you..." Gray summoned an Ice Hammer and struck the enemy down into the ground.

Meanwhile, on the other side of him, Juvia was fiercely battling the partner, who had left the cow in the bushes. He used Air Magic, and had tried to lock Juvia into an Aerial. The attempt was unsuccessful, as Juvia just slipped through as water, and now she had trapped him in a Water Lock.

He dropped down quickly after that, and Juvia came to join Gray, who wasn't doing so well against the powerful, same element mage. Every move Gray made, the man was able to mirror.

"Ice Make: Sword!" Gray made a sharp sword before lunging at the enemy.

"Ice Make: Sword!" The enemy met Gray halfway, and they had a strong duel before their ice snapped.

"Gray-sama." Juvia grabbed his outstretched hand, and turned him into a tango position.

Gray swore under his breath as he pushed them out f the way to avoid another attack. "Juvia, what the hell are you doing?"

Juvia just pulled him into it, as she always did. Her watery power surged through his veins, and his body replied in turn before he even understood what was happening.

They were doing a Unison Raid.

He grinned as magic circled the two of them, and the familiar feeling of _togetherness _swept over. Their Magic Circles fused into one, and soon, huge erupting jets of water and raining ice needles came down upon the enemy, who fell in an instant.

Juvia let go slightly, panting and sweaty but _smiling. _Gray was in the same state too, but he smiled a little, and he felt something stir deep inside of him.

_Juvia...that was fun._

* * *

Lucy's petite form was thrown to the ground in haste. The creature swooped over her, and landed on the other side of the cave.

Lucy shuddered, her bones aching painfully as she tried to pull herself up. She winced as her leg suddenly jolted. _Come on Lucy...be strong._

She pulled herself up and staggered a few steps before flattening herself against the rock wall. She had to be quiet. She had to be _stealthy. _

She had to defeat this creature, whatever it was. _All by herself._

She slowed down her breath to a near whisper before peeking around the corner. What she saw was a normal Forest Vulcan, large, green, and pink. It was eating at something or the other, and Lucy saw this as her fast chance to defeat it when its guard was down.

"Open the Gate of the Golden Bull! Taurus!" The raging bull was summoned.

"Lucy, I will protect-"

"Not now, Taurus," Lucy interjected before he could say something perverted. "Can you just go and fight that Vulcan? Please?"

Taurus quickly rushed at the oblivious Vulcan, who turned around at the last second to dodge the oncoming axe attack. Taurus proceeded to chase the Vulcan around the small cave. swinging his large battle axe dangerously, almost decapitating Lucy.

Eventually, Taurus landed his mark. He struck the Vulcan down, and it fell, defeated. Taurus disappeared soon after, but not before adding that he "was happy to have protected Lucy's boobs".

Lucy wiped her sweaty brow, sighing in relief. Even though it was only a Vulcan, she was still happy that she had defeated it all by herself.

_Maybe I am strong after all!_

* * *

_Hang on Lucy! _Natsu continued to sprint, jumping over tricky roots and bursting through the thick vegetation. Not even a brick wall would stop him from reaching the Stellar Spirit Mage that was his best friend.

For a split second, Natsu contemplated why he was doing what he was. _Why _was he running to save Lucy? She was strong enough to fend off whatever it way. She was from Fairy Tail!

_But, _Natsu though with a jolt. _What is she isn't? What if it's some insane dark guild boss? What if it's a wyvern or something? What if-_

_What if it was a creepy stalker pervert!?_

Fire jetted out of Natsu's feet as he roared like a dragon who had reached his limit. The ground shook as his speed increased ten fold.

He didn't know much about _why _he was running like a mad man to save Lucy, who was already strong enough on her own, _even if it was an insane dark guild boss or a wyvern. _All he did know was that if it was a scary pervert, she would be at a huge, weak disadvantage.

No matter what happened, he had to protect Lucy, and even though she was a strong mage, she was also a young, attractive (a nice image of Lucy in a bikini suddenly popped up, though he wasn't sure why) woman all alone deep in a forest.

Anything could happen out _here._

* * *

Gray and Juvia, after catching their breath, started traveling in the direction Natsu and Lisanna had gone in hopes of joining up with them again.

It would take some time, they knew, to make up the time they lost. Yet they were ready for whatever was thrown at them this time.

A comfortable silence hung between the two of them, and Juvia didn't even try to touch him. Her hand hung limp by her side, swinging with each step she took.

It was Gray who closed the space; his fingers brushed hers before entwining with hers. The blue haired girl glanced up at him for a split second, surprised, but he only looked forward. She smiled sfotly before doing the same.

* * *

"Lucy!" Natsu ran into the cave, out of breath. Lucy turned around, her golden hair whipping around her like a halo.

"Natsu?" Lucy took a step towards him.

"Lucy..." he panted. "Are you...okay?"

Lucy laughed, and Natsu felt like dancing for a really weird reason. "I'm _fine, _Natsu. Thanks for worrying."

"What happened?" And thus Lucy explained all about the Forest Vulcan that had kidnapped her, and the quick fight that ended in its defeat.

Natsu chuckled, raising a hand to tousle Lucy's flowing blonde hair. She pouted childishly at her messed up hair, and the dragon slayer laughed. She eventually opened up and giggled along with him.

* * *

Lisanna rounded the corner to find a cave. She saw Natsu there, in all his pink hared glory...

And Lucy. They were there together, her explaining something with huge hand motions and Natsu listening intently. Lisanna's feet stopped moving, and she stood rooted to one spot. _Was I too late?_

Then _her husband _played with Lucy's hair (which _still _somehow looked perfect) and both of them laughed together.

Lisanna felt her stomach clench painfully. She didn't want to admit it, but they seemed to have good chemistry. Better than she and Natsu _ever_ had.

And they seemed so _happy. _Natsu never smiled or _laughed _when he talked with her. But no, his eyes _lit up _when he just so much as _heard _Lucy's voice, as if he only existed for her to wrap around her dainty little finger as she did with so many other boys.

Lisanna felt an unexpected _hatred _for the blonde rise up in her chest. _How dare she _steal _her husband _from right underneath her nose?!

Lisanna would give her one thing-she played the damsel in distress part well. Lisanna knew that she was much stronger than she let on, that she was manipulating all of them, that she was a sneaky little _bitch._

Lisanna _knew _that Lucy was not as innocent as she seemed.

* * *

"Good job," Natsu said, slinging an arm around Lucy's shoulders and pulling her close. Their height difference made Lucy's cheek painfully bump into Natsu's shoulder, and as she was held close to him (gaining the heat she was deprived of before) she realized that if she stretched a little, she could fit her nose into the base of his neck...

_Bad Lucy! He's Natsu, why would you think stupid things like that? _Lucy scolded herself, before jolting in another realization-_What the hell, Natsu has his arm around me like we're a...couple?_

Lucy almost threw his arm off of her, before thinking _hey, this isn't so bad. _I mean, they were just _best friends _and nothing more, so this was of course only meant as a friendly gesture. Plus, he slept in her _freaking_ _bed, _so relatively, this wasn't bad at all.

Actually, Lucy found the heat to be very..._comforting_. _Should I...?_

Without thinking, she snuggled closer into him.

* * *

Lisanna saw them walking out of the cave, the blonde snuggling into Natsu, and suppressed a scream as she flattened herself against a tree. Once they were out of earshot and her eyesight, she took a couple deep breaths before setting off after them.

Now that she had figured her out, Lisanna would _definitely _beat Lucy at her game.

* * *

The three of them had managed to join up with Juvia and Gray. Together, they headed back to get their award-_which was actually the full amount because they didn't destroy anything!-_and boarded another train back to Magnolia early the next morning.

Juvia sat next to Gray, her head lulling into Gray's shoulder as she fell asleep. Though it was a valiant attempt, Gray could only stay awake for a few more minutes before closing his eyes, his head thumping ungracefully on top of Juvia's.

Lucy giggled at the sight. _They are so cute together!_

Natsu, of course, was having his usual motion sickness, and as usual, was laying on his back with his head in Lucy's lap. She would stroke his salmon hair and run her fingers through his pink locks and give him a gentle head massage just like he liked it, and he would be able to barely contain himself for the whole ride.

Lisanna watched Lucy grow a little tired. _My chance!_

"Lucy, if you're tired, I could take your spot," Lisanna said.

Lucy smiled. "That's nice-"

"_Lucy!" _Natsu choked out in a strangled voice, his face an odd shade of green. Lucy gasped before rubbing his stomach and continuing her head massage.

"I don't think I can leave Natsu alone for even a minute!" Lucy giggled at Natsu, and Lisanna clenched and unclenched her fists unnoticeably.

She would win Natsu yet.

_After all, all's fair in love and war._

* * *

A/N: Wow, I didn't expect the story to be this popular! **Thank you so much for all the support you have all been giving me.** It's keeping me really motivated to keep writing this story, despite my busy schedule.

I hope you all liked this chapter as much as I enjoyed writing it. I tried including a lot of NaLu and a little bit of fluffiness (if you squint). As for Lisanna...who know? She's one jealous girl though. ;-)

For the next chapter, I'm going to say that it will center in on Erza...will she find Jellal? You'll have to wait for the next chapter! But, I will post faster if I get more reviews..._hint hint._


	4. The Reunion

Erza laid back on the rock, its surface hot from the sun's harsh glow. Her red hair splayed out around her like a fire as she stared up at the _way too blue and happy sky_.

It had been a few days. She knew Jellal was off in Crime Sorciere, fighting Dark Guilds. But she had never bothered to know exactly _where _the guild was.

After talking to some people, she found out that it was in this quaint little village a little ways away from Magnolia. Since there was no train station there, she had to travel to Acalypha and start walking from there.

It had been a peaceful, quiet journey with lots of time to contemplate. It was the kind of thing she liked to do-be alone with no one around for miles, stuck in a silence that stood to be broken by no one.

But still, she missed the usual presence of her friends around her. Happy, with his idiotic fish remarks...Lucy, with her cheerful yet vain personality...Natsu and Gray with their constant bickering...

Her heart thumped painfully. She had to be strong; this was something she had to do _alone. _She was going to face Jellal herself and demand some answers from him.

She was going to find out, once and for all, whether he felt something for her just like how she _thought_ she did for him.

(But first, to the more important matters-could you have a picnic all by yourself?)

* * *

Jellal strolled along the path, his blue hair flying around his face in the wind that blew by.

He was coming back from another successful mission. He had eliminated yet another dark guild-Noogie Mom? Nice Mustache? Jellal didn't even remember the name.

The point was that every day seemed to be the same to Jellal-defeat a dark guild, fight another dark guild, battle _another _dark guild.

He missed the variety he used to have; the feeling that something new and amazing would happen. He missed the colorful _vibrancy _of his old life.

His life was now in a monochrome. He missed the bright _scarlet _that used to color it.

* * *

Erza began walking again, this time hitting a path. As she followed it, she saw the roofs of houses in the distance.

_I must be close to the village. _Picking up her speed, she began to jog.

* * *

The outline of the town Jellal had come to know so well came into view. He began walking faster, sighing as he did.

* * *

Erza had reached the town and was strolling through the center by a couple shops. She looked up...

And saw someone walking in her direction. What was odd though, was that this person had shocking blue hair.

Curious, she ran towards the person. _Could it be?_

* * *

Jellal heard the sound of someone's feet pounding against the pavement. Next, he heard clinking-_of armor?_

The person was getting closer and closer. His eyes traveled up...long legs...blue skirt...(No, he was _not _staring!) shiny breastplate...

A flash of crimson. Bright red hair flipped around, and only one person he knew had hair as beautiful as that.

The person stopped in front of him. There was a soft pant, barely audible.

"Erza." He looked up to find the face of his best friend, the face that haunted him every night.

"Jellal," she said back, in an equally dark tone. She saw the childhood friend that had saved her from herself, the young man that she had fallen for.

* * *

"So what are you doing here?" Jellal asked, after they had both settled themselves on a bench. "Why are you here?"

"I wanted to see how you were doing." The lie slipped off of Erza's tongue like butter.

_Well, it wasn't _completely _untrue. I _did _want to see how he was doing, _Erza thought to herself. _I just also wanted to know if he liked me._ _So it's only a partial lie.  
_

But it was still a lie nonetheless, and lying was so unlike Erza that she herself was unsure of what to do.

And Erza was _always _sure of what she's doing.

"Oh...well, that's nice of you," Jellal said, and Erza thought she heard a hint of sadness in his voice. Had he hoped for something..._more?_

"I also...I missed you," Erza blurted, deciding that she was a _horrible _liar as she did so.

"So did I," Jellal admitted, and-_no, were his ears turning red? _Erza caught herself staring at him for some kind of romantic hint.

"Well," Jellal coughed, breaking the awkward tension. "Uh...do you want something to eat?" That was when Erza noticed that they were sitting in front of a cafe.

"Yes, please." Erza gladly accepted the invitation, and when they walked in, she didn't notice how his hand had inconspicuously grabbed her's.

* * *

As the two stood in line, Erza realized something with a jolt. _Is this a...date?!_

It was just the two of them, he asked her to go with him, and she accepted. It was an honest-to-goodness date.

As they neared the front and Erza got over this new revelation, she jiggled her money bag to see that _she had absolutely nothing._

"Jellal?" Erza asked nervously. How could she have _no _money? It was so _stupid _of her to travel with nothing on her. "Could you pay for me?"

Jellal frowned, his eyebrows furrowing. He reached into his pocket and scoured around with his fingers. "Yeah, I think I have enough."

Erza sighed. _Thank Mavis. _She was starving. Trying to find your crush in an unknown place is not very easy, after all.

* * *

They reached the counter, and Jellal took a deep breath. _Okay, I'm ready._

He had to play this right. He had to be _smooth. _He had to be a _gentleman. _Jellal had asked Erza to eat with him, fully knowing it was like their first date, and he knew he had to do it right.

"Excuse me, may I have one decaf...and one slice of strawberry cake please?" He sensed Erza brighten up behind him, and grinned. Like hell he would forget that she _loved _strawberry cake.

_I did it! _And Jellal was so proud of himself for getting the date right so far that as they walked to an empty table with their food and drink in hand, Jellal tripped over a man's outstretched foot.

Jellal yelled as he started to fall, unable to stop himself. Erza whirled around, her _too gorgeous to be true _red hair flipping with her...her brown eyes wide in surprise...

He stumbled over her foot. She squealed (distinctly sounding like a "kya" if Jellal heard right) and leaned back, her own feet tipping.

Jellal dropped his cup and grabbed her behind the waist. Hot coffee splashed over them, but they didn't notice. With Erza steady, she was able to grab the cake easily, and held it with one hand.

The whole place was staring at them in an awed silence, the workers were shouting angrily for the waste of good coffee, but Erza and Jellal only had eyes for each other.

Erza was staring into his deep brown eyes when she suddenly realized that she was being dipped by Jellal and that his warm arms were around her waist tightly. He was so close to her...if she leaned up, and he tilted down, their lips might meet. It reminded her of the time on the beach...another almost-kiss where she regretted that she hadn't closed the distance before it was too late.

Jellal lost himself in her coffee eyes before coming back down to Earthland and realizing that he was holding Erza like they were dancing and he was dipping her for a kiss.

Stuttering, he helped her up, and they hurried out of the cafe, Jellal forgetting quickly about his long-gone coffee.

* * *

They sat again on the bench with a tense silence between them, Erza quietly munching on her cake while Jellal zoned out on a tree across the way.

"So." Erza daintily dabbed her mouth with a napkin, and Jellal couldn't help but watch her and think about how _cute _she looked.

Suddenly, Erza started laughing loudly and boisterously. Jellal's eyes widened in disbelief. They had just embarrassed themselves in front of a lot of people, he had dipped her, and..._why is she laughing?!_

She didn't stop though, so Jellal nervously joined in with some obviously fake laughs.

When she finally died down, she was smiling like Jellal had never seen before, and in a heartbeat the man decided that the whole thing had been worth it.

"That was so funny!" Erza giggled, putting her head down onto Jellal's shoulder. He tensed, before relaxing into her weight. _Her head fits perfectly into my shoulder._

"Thank you...for saving me?" Erza laughed again, and so did Jellal. It was _a little _silly, when you thought about it.

"You're welcome, princess." Erza tensed at that. _Princess? I'm a princess? But I'm always the knight...the knight in shining armor who spills blood and saves everybody from the evil dragon._

(That's when she realized how messed up everything was in Fairy Tail, because going by that, _Natsu _would be the evil dragon.)

But when she glanced up at the now-happy Jellal, she only saw her _own _knight in shining armor.

_Even the best of warriors have a weakness...an Achilles Heel. _

Jellal must be _her _weakness, Erza decided. And, if that was true...she was _okay _with that.

He could be her knight in shining armor. At least, by coffee and cake standards.

* * *

A/N: A short and silly chapter with loads of Jerza fluff for the soul. Hoped you liked it muchly! :)

I am so, so, so, SO happy with the amount of support and encouragement you guys have been giving me on this story. I have never had so many reviews on one chapter before, and so fast too. **Thank you so much. **This is my most successful story so far!

To thank you all for the support you have been giving me (and to motivate you more for future chapters) I am going to start a new thing. Every chapter I'll ask a question, and the first person to answer it right in the reviews will get an FT drabble by me, with the pairing of their choosing!

Yes, free drabbles. One per chapter. And the question for this time is:

[He had eliminated yet another dark guild-Noogie Mom? Nice Mustache? Jellal didn't even remember the name.]

Remember this part? The question is: What's the name of this guild that Jellal can't remember? It has appeared several times throughout the series as a minor dark guild.

So, hope that keeps you on your toes! For the next chapter, we will be returning back to the guild, and focusing on our other guild mates. Evergreen loses something-can Elfman help her? And where's Gajeel going? What's Levy going to do about it?

All in the next chapter of Top Ten! ;-) Stay tuned!


	5. The Earring

Mirajane sighed in content while wiping down the bar table. It was so..._peaceful _in the guild today.

With Team Natsu gone on their mission, nobody was around to start the brawls. Thus, people just chatted and drank quietly, and no furniture was destroyed.

Miajane _loved _it. Even though she was fine with how Fairy Tail normally was, having a change of pace like this was also _very _nice.

So, Mirajane decided, that she should enjoy the silence while it lasted.

But all good things come to an end, and so did the quiet. It was too much to hope for.

* * *

Mirajane felt herself twitch violently as Evergreen broke the calm atmosphere by shrieking loudly.

"Who died?" Bickslow said randomly, sitting up. "Evergreen, did you die?"

"No, you idiot!" Evergreen cried. "But I might as well!"

Laxus ran over to her. "Is it a guy? I'll take care of him." He cracked his knuckles, which were cackling with electricity.

"No," she moaned. "I lost one of my earrings!"

"Oh. Whatever." Bickslow and Laxus both left. Why should they waste their time on a stupid _earring_?

Evergreen growled and grabbed the two men by the back of their shirt collars, choking them in the process. "You two are going to help me find it, whether you like it or not!"

Fried slogged over. "It doesn't really matter, Ever, it's just an earring."

Evergreen turned on him next. "It's not _just an earring_! They were part of my most expensive and precious pair."

"How is it precious? And we can buy you more if you want."

"It's precious because..." Evergreen bit her lip, her cheeks tinting pink slightly. "Whatever, just start looking! It looks like this." She tilted her head so the three of them could see the remaining one.

It was a dangling green earring that glinted when she moved; Mirajane guessed that it might have been some kind of precious stone. But it looked very familiar for some reason...and Mirajane couldn't remember where she had seen it before.

* * *

The sight that followed the whole fiasco was quite funny. Three of the strongest men in Fairy Tail, one an _S-Class wizard_, were down on their knees on the floor hunting for a small piece of jewelry.

Mirajane almost laughed out loud. This was hilarious! She started rummaging around for a camera.

"Don't give up! I know it's around here somewhere." Evergreen said.

"This isn't very manly, guys," Elfman deadpanned, watching Laxus bump his head on the table next to him.

"Well, we don't want to piss of Ever," Bicklow whispered from the other side of him.

Elfman paled. The last time he irritated Evergreen, she turned him to stone for a couple days. (And that does really _nasty_ things to a guy's back.)

"Helping others is manly!" Elfman shouted hastily, jumping onto the floor to join the others.

Mirajane shot a photo of all four of them scouring around for the earring and giggled lightly. _Wait until the Master sees this!_

* * *

Watching Elfman hunt around for the earring made Mirajane remember where she had seen the thing before.

Mirajane couldn't believe she had forgotten. _Elfman _had gotten the earring _for _Evergreen!

She recalled it like it was yesterday. The two had gone on a mission together a few times before, when the rest of the Thunder God Tribe was too lazy to do any work and Evergreen needed the money.

On the last one that they took together, when they were coming back, Evergreen had seen the earrings in a shop window and wanted them badly. So, Elfman bought them for her.

Mirajane smiled. That was so sweet. No wonder Evergreen was going out of her mine now that she lost one of them.

But _where_ was it?

* * *

"Gajeel, weren't you going to leave for more training today?" Mirajane sweetly asked to the man who was sitting in front of her, sipping his iron smoothie.

"Tomorrow," he grunted.

Levy's ears perked up from the far corner. _Gajeel...training...tomorrow? _She set her book down (not before bookmarking her page though) and walked over to the bar.

"Gajeel, you're leaving tomorrow?" Levy asked, biting her lip. Even though she knew he didn't like her, she couldn't stop liking him. It hurt her to know that her love was unrequited. _Is this how Juvia feels every day?_

She wanted him to stay, nonetheless. _Stay with me._

"Yeah, Shorty." He ruffled her blue hair, and she pouted. "Gotta get stronger."

Levy spoke out. "You're plenty strong! You don't have to go!"

Gajeel let out a throaty laugh. "No way."

Levy bit her lip so hard it turned white. Gajeel tended to train for a long time...and she didn't want to be alone for so long. (Well, Jet, Droy, and Lucy were there, but that's not what she meant.) And being separated from him would probably hurt her even more than it did when she stayed with him.

"Gajeel, please don't leave," she whispered, something very unlike her. Normally, she would have jut kept quiet and bottled up her feelings. But being around Gajeel for so long had made her more open to risks.

So here she was, putting her heart on her sleeve.

She had whispered very softly, so soft that Mirajane couldn't pick it up. But she knew Gajeel would, with his supersonic hearing and whatnot.

Gajeel's blood red eyes widened slightly. But his mouth was pressed in a thin line, and Levy knew his answer before he said it himself.

"No."

* * *

"Did you find it yet?" Evergreen asked sharply, drinking something out of a mug and crossing one leg over the other.

_Why the hell is she so relaxed while we're working our butts off to find something that's _her's_? _Laxus thought, crawling along the guild floor. _Why the hell am I doing this anyway?_

Laxus stood up and brushed himself off, before turning on Evergreen. "Why aren't you helping? The ear ring is yours after all!"

Evergreen gasped. "I do so much for you, and you can't even help my find one small thing?"

Laxus scoffed. "Please. You don't do _anything _for us."

Evergreen stood up. "Well, I'm always the one turning everybody to stone on missions. I don't see _you _doing anything remarkable."

Laxus narrowed his eyes. "You've got to be kidding. Without me, this team would be nothing."

"Hey!" Fried and Bickslow called out. "That's not true!"

"You're not that great, Laxus," Evergreen said.

"I'm stronger than all three of you combined!"

"Oh really?" Bickslow got up, pumping his fists together. "I want to see that."

"Is that a challenge?" Electricity surrounded Laxus as he got into an offensive stance.

However, the beginning fight was quickly ended when Evergreen got in front of Laxus and whipped off her glasses. He didn't look away fast enough, and soon there was a stone statue of the resident Lightning Dragon Slayer.

Mirajane sighed. "I'll move him into the back room." Picking up the stone statue with inhuman strength, she carried Stone Laxus with one hand and chucked him into a closet.

Evergreen whirled around. "Anyone else?"

Bickslow, Fried, and Elfman all whimpered before shouting "No, ma'am!" and continuing to look for her ear ring.

* * *

Levy sat at her usual table, deep in thought. For once, her book was closed.

Gajeel was usually found right next to her, but after what had just happened, he probably wanted to stay away. Levy didn't blame him; she would have done the same if the situation was reversed.

Levy smiled wistfully. _If the situation was reversed..._She would be strong, tall, pretty...and Gajeel would return her feelings.

But that was only a fantasy that happened in books. For that was the reason Levy was such an avid reader; to escape harsh reality in too-perfect-to-be-true worlds.

* * *

Elfman scooted over to the bar. Underneath the counter, hidden in the shadows, something glinted.

_No way! _It was too good to be true. Was that the ear ring? Had he _finally _found it?

Elfman clumsily reached for the object. After slipping through his meaty fingers a couple times, he finally got a hold of it. He brought it close to his eye.

It was small...it was green...it was shiny. It was Evergreen's ear ring!

_Wait a second. _Elfman did a double take on the jewelery. _Isn't that the one I got for her?_

It was. Elfman smiled.

_She still wears it. That's good._

* * *

"I found it! I'm a man!" Elfman yelled, standing up, bumping his head on the bar counter in the process.

Evergreen squealed, clacking over to him in her high heels. She snatched it from him and squealed again.

"You found it! My ear ring!" In that moment of happiness, Evergreen flung her arms around Elfman's large torso, standing on her toes. "I'm so happy! Thank you!"

Elfman flushed red, before hesitantly hugging her back around her thin waist. "You're...welcome?"

Evergreen, realizing what she was doing, jumped a mile away from Elfman, her whole face red like a tomato. There was an awkward silence for a while. (Fried and Bickslow were trying very hard to not laugh though.)

"Yeah," Evergreen randomly said, fastening the ear ring onto her ear where it belonged. "Thanks."

Elfman grinned. "This is nothing for a man."

Evergreen smiled softly back. "How manly of you."

* * *

The sun had just risen over the trees the next day when Gajeel walked into the guild. He was planning to eat breakfast from Mirajane (because she was a _damn _good cook) and then head out for his training.

Pantherlily walked by his side. "Are you going to miss Levy?"

Gajeel froze, looking down on him with incredulous eyes. "What are you talking about?"

Pantherlily smirked. "Well, you are around her a lot..."

The Black Exceed ended up not getting any food that morning.

* * *

Gajeel mumbled a thanks, wiping his mouth with his sleeve.

"Take care of yourself!" Mirajane called. He nodded, swinging his pack over his sleeve and heading to the door.

"Wait!" Suddenly, the large guild doors burst open, and Gajeel and Mirajane's heads whipped around to see none other than the petite Levy, panting heavily with a small blue backpack on her back.

"I'm coming with you," Levy said, staring up at a shocked Gajeel. "I'm coming with you, whether you like it or not."

Levy stood her ground and remained strong, not allowing any emotion to cross her face. She had though long and hard over this the last night, and she finally decided that the best thing to do would to just _go with him. _She could get stronger and get to spend some time alone with him.

Her hopes raised a little. _Maybe he'll start to like me when we're all alone training!_

(Well, Pantherlily was always there, but she wasn't too worried about him. He knew how she felt about the man anyways, and was actually quite understanding.)

Levy was hoping that Gajeel would start to like her like she already did; however, Gajeel had already fallen quite hard for the small yet so _strong _girl in front of him. (He just didn't know it yet.)

Gajeel let out a small smile. How could he refuse her, when she was standing so strong and proud? He knew that even if he refused her, she would follow him anyway. She was really very stubborn and powerful-she just didn't harness those qualities often.

_A pity_, Gajeel thought. _It's a pity that Levy is capable but can't fight that well._

_Maybe I can fix that._

"Okay." Levy's eyes widened when she heard Gajeel say _yes. _She didn't actually think he would.

A wide, beaming smile broke on her face. "Come on then, let's go! We have to leave before Jet and Droy come, otherwise they won't let me go."

She grabbed Gajeel's wrist and tugged him outside. Mirajane bade farewell to them. She hoped everything would work out with them.

* * *

Meanwhile, outside, Levy ran down the cobbled road and into the buttery morning sun.

"Bet you can't catch me!"

Gajeel smirked. _He _bet he _could. _

"Watch out Shorty, I'm coming!"

The two began playing an odd game of tag, sprinting away from the guild and Magnolia and into the forest and eventually to the mountains, where they'd spend the next week training, battling, and _maybe, just maybe _falling in love.

* * *

A/N: I hoped you liked all the ElfEver and GaLevy!

**Question for this chapter (Remember, you get a free drabble if you answer right!):**

What kind of magic does Bickslow use?

Anyways, stay tuned for the next chapter, where Team Natsu will come back to the guild, Wendy asks Lucy for love advice, and Happy is able to corner Carla.

And don't forget to review!


	6. The Advice

"We're back!"

Team Natsu-or rather, the makeshift one-burst through the guild doors in their full fledged gory.

Mirajane reached for the mission log to record that they had come home and _actually gotten the full award. _(_Is this for real? _Mirajane thought. _They didn't destroy anything?_)

Either way, Juvia was still clinging to Gray like her life depended on it. (Knowing Juvia, her life probably _did_.) Gray wasn't even fighting her anymore; it seemed like he was already used to her weight on his arm.

And he wasn't even bothered by it anymore. Gray was having an animated conversation with her, as if having a (rabid) girl hanging off his body was completely normal.

Mirajane giggled under her breath. _Exactly as I predicted._

That was when the love triangle (also known as Mirajane's _wrong predictions_) sat down at the bar.

_Oh no._

* * *

"How was your mission?" Mirajane buttered on the sunshine and sparkles. Lucy began to narrate the whole story of her getting kidnapped and then defeating a Vulcan all by herself.

(She may have exaggerated a bit though...like, Mirajane _seriously _doubted that she defeated a Vulcan with her bare hands.)

Natsu told Mirajane that Lucy was lying and _he _defeated the Vulcan all by himself. An argument between the two erupted, and it was so fierce that Lisanna was able to have a little sister-to-sister talk with Mira without them even hearing her.

"Natsu ran to save Lucy when she got kidnapped," Lisanna told her forlornly. "He wouldn't stop for anyone, not even me."

Mirajane forced herself to smile sympathetically. She loved her sister, but honestly, she knew that she had no chance.

(Then why was she breaking Lisanna's heart even more by egging her on?

_Well, _Mirajane mused, _she'll never know that _I _was the one who posted the list, so it's okay...I just look like a normal older sister._)

"You know how Natsu is about his _nakama_," Mirajane said, putting a hand on her younger sister's shoulder. "He was probably just worried about her, and didn't pay attention to you."

Lisanna thought for a moment. "I suppose you're right. I wonder if he'd do that for me?" After pondering on this for a moment, the youngest Strauss sibling walked away.

Mirajane sighed in relief before turning to grab more booze for _another _drinking match between Cana and Macao. (That's all they had done after _the list_-Macao was determined to prove he was the better drinker.)

_I hope Lisanna isn't planning anything dangerous..._Mirajane thought, remembering Lisanna's thoughts about whether Natsu would try to save her.

However, she pushed the silly thought to the back of her head _(Lisanna's a smart girl, she wouldn't put herself in danger for a _guy_!) _and headed over to hand out the beer and bet on Cana _again. _

(Cana won, as usual.)

* * *

Lucy huffed, blowing a blonde lock out of her eyes in frustration. _Stupid Natsu!_

All she had wanted was to tell Mirajane how _strong _she had been on the mission, but _no, _Natsu just _had _to want to steal the _only glory she had _and lie about his _nonexistent heroic-ness. _

(Well, he did save her and catch her when she was falling all the time, but that was another story.)

So he had made up a stupid story that no one would believe about how _he _defeated the Vulcan with his bare hands, not Lucy. (Which was actually pretty believable, but whatever.)

They had argued for a long time, but Lucy finally gave up with the lost cause in front of her and left to go find Levy and rant out her life's (Natsu) problems to the blue haired girl.

But Levy was _gone, _off with Gajeel or something in the mountains training. (Her evidence was a sobbing Jet and Droy and a _very suspicious_ Mirajane.)

Now she had no one to talk to. Natsu was obviously out of the question, since he was the one who _started _this, and Gray was too busy with Juvia now to pay attention to her. (Plus, it's not like she wanted to get her eyes clawed out by a lovesick Juvia.)

Mirajane would obviously take this as romantic evidence (which it was not!) and Cana was too drunk with Macao to talk.

And Lisanna...well, Lucy had felt like she was kind of _avoiding _her. (Which was really stupid, because why would Lisanna want to avoid her?)

So, Lucy decided that the only thing she could do was sit all by herself in a lonely corner of the guild, away from all the action and noise.

That was, until petite _Wendy, _of all people, came up to her.

* * *

"Lucy-san..." the Sky Dragon Slayer mumbled. "I need some help."

Lucy was more than happy to oblige, and finally get to _talk _to someone. "Of course, Wendy! What do you need help with? Sit next to me."

Wendy seated herself next to Lucy glumly, and the blonde noted the absence of Carla.

"Where's Carla?"

"Oh, I don't know. She's kind of been avoiding me lately, and now she's kind of mad that Pantherlily left without saying anything."

"Oh. Is that what this is about?"

"No..."

Wendy sat quietly for a few moments, and Lucy was beginning to wonder if she had lost her when tears bubbled up in the blue haired girl's eyes and she moaned.

Lucy panicked. "Wendy, what's wrong?!"

Wendy shook her head mutely, and Lucy was about to call Mirajane. What was wrong?

Wendy swallowed back more tears and a wail. "It's just...I don't know what to do."

Lucy sighed, beginning to involuntarily braid Wendy's long and gorgeous sapphire hair. "Can I help you? I'm pretty good at giving advice, if I do say so myself."

"Promise you won't tell?" Wendy asked, and Lucy smiled.

"I'm not like Mira, Wendy. Now tell me, what's eating you?"

"I...I like Romeo." Wendy then began gushing all about her new-found crush to the Stellar Spirit Mage, who was a much better listener than Carla and even giggled at some of the thing she said.

Lucy grinned wistfully...this was exactly how she felt when _she _had her first crush. It was a wonderful feeling, really. Watching Wendy brought her back...back to times when her mom was alive and her dad wasn't a (dead) mean workaholic.

"I...I don't know how to tell him..." Wendy said, and Lucy laughed.

"Nobody said it was easy, Wendy," Lucy told her, tying a bow on the end of Wendy's braided hair. "It's really hard to go up to a guy and tell him."

Wendy groaned. "Then how? Will he never know?"

Lucy sat in front of her, cupping her head in her chin. "Well, do you think he likes you?"

Wendy thought for a moment. "Not really...I don't think he even knows who I am."

Lucy sat up, eyebrows scrunched. "Wendy! Don't ask a guy out unless you're _absolutely _sure that he likes you back."

Wendy's eyes widened. "How will I know?"

Lucy smirked, and Wendy suddenly felt _very _scared. (She looked like Mirajane!)

* * *

**_Lucy's Awesome, Always Right Guide to Guys for Girls All Over the World (or Wendy)_**

_1. Become good friends with him first. _

"Wendy, he can't like you if he doesn't even know you!"

"True..."

* * *

_2. Always smile and make eye contact. Be funny, and try to walk in front of him often so he notices you._

"Why would walking in front of him help?"

"Well, if you're wearing a short skirt, and it's windy-"

"_Lucy-san!"_

* * *

_3. Be cute._

"How?"

"Puppy dog eyes. It's all in the eyes."

* * *

_4. Be subtle. Talk to him and hang out with him, but not all the time. Drop tiny hints._

"What kinds of hints?"

"That's in the next item."

* * *

_5._ _Flirt. Break the touch barrier, play with your hair (but never bat your eyelashes!). Don't be too awkward and don't be overly flirtatious though._

"Lucy-san, flitting is scary!"

"Wendy, it's _flirting_..."

* * *

_6._ _Love yourself. If you love yourself, you'll be good to yourself, and that will look good to him. Wear cute, decent clothes, keep your hair nice, apply a little make up, and you'll be all set. _

"M-make up?"

"I'll do it for you, don't worry."

* * *

_7. Throw glances at him once in a while and see if he returns them. If you find him looking your way, give him something to look at-glance away shyly, look into his eyes briefly before breaking away, or completely ignore him and let him stare at you. (Make sure, if you take the latter, to do something with your hands or hair to look cute.)_

"I have nothing _for _him to look at..."

"_Wendy! _Remember number six-love yourself!"

* * *

_8._ _Find out what kinds of things he likes, so you can have a common interest. Find something to do with him. Do whatever, just do it with him._

"Like a mission?"

"Exactly! You're getting the hang of this!"

* * *

_9. When he returns the feelings, flirt back until he finally asks you out. Always remember, you're a girl-and girls are powerful! So, you can be assertive and ask him too._

"Maybe Romeo _will_ like me! Thank you, Lucy-san!"

"Don't mention it, Wendy."

"Lucy-san, hope you don't mind me asking, but why do you know all this?"

"I _have _had my fair share of boyfriends, you know."

"Do _you_ like anyone?"

"...No, what makes you say that?"

"Nothing!" Wendy giggled, blushing, before grabbing the scrap piece of paper Lucy had scribbled her advice onto. "I'll be sure to try these starting tomorrow!"

* * *

After Wendy agreed to be at Lucy's apartment by seven tomorrow morning for her first make over, she left, skipping and humming a happy tune out of the guild and to Fairy Hills.

Lucy sighed contentedly, before heading out too. It was pretty late, and she needed to write the next chapter of her novel.

* * *

Natsu stood up from the table he was sitting at with Gray and Juvia (who had basically become a single entity now, with how physically close Juvia was to him).

"Are you leaving?" Gray asked. Natsu nodded, still staring at the closed doors.

"What are you-ah," Gray said, leaning back. "Lucy's left, hasn't she?"

Natsu turned to his rival. "Yeah. So?"

Gray smirked. "So you want to go after her, don't you?"

Natsu shrugged. "Well, yeah, she _is _my best friend...and you two are getting all mushy and boring, so I'm outta here." Natsu blasted out of the guild doors (scratch that, _through _the guild doors) and after the Celestial Spirit Mage who had left minutes before.

Gray protested, even though the fire mage was already long gone. "Juvia and I are _not _mushy! Or boring!"

That's when Gray noticed that his hand was resting on top of Juvia's. He jumped a mile away, shrieking like a girl and running out after Natsu.

Juvia blinked. Boys (Gray) would always be a mystery, wouldn't they?

(Maybe that's what drew her in.)

* * *

"Carla?"

The white Exceed turned, finding the last person (cat) that she wanted to see at the moment. "What do you want, Male Cat?"

Happy stepped toward her. "You."

Carla's eyebrows furrowed, her legs taking a step back on their own. "What do you mean? What are you-oh!"

Carla had now hit the wall of the guild in a dark corner, and Happy was right in front of her, grinning evilly.

Carla's heart was racing, and her thoughts were flying all over the place. _Oh my gosh, what is he doing? Is he going to take my innocence? But I'm too young!_

But she didn't really have to worry, since Happy just brightened up and handed her a fish, which she (as usual) slapped back in his face and stormed away.

_Stupid Happy and his stupid fish! _Carla thought, biting her lip and walking out the doors, since Wendy had already left.

(No, an aggressive Happy was not hot...at all.)

* * *

Natsu hopped onto Lucy's windowsill. "I'm home!"

Natsu expected to get a Lucy kick to the face as he always did, but instead he found his best blonde (busty) friend sleeping at her desk on top of her writing, her face turned towards him. The setting sun gave her an orange glow, and the content smile on her face was of complete bliss.

Natsu chuckled, walking in and carrying her to her bed. She was heavy...(not like he'd tell that to her face) but he dealt with it.

Laying her on her bed, Natsu squatted to be level with her sleeping form. Her chest rose up and down with each slow breath, and her blonde hair was splayed around like a halo.

Natsu felt an odd urge to stroke her golden locks of hair, to place it behind her ear so he could get a full view of her face. _What?_

As he continued to stare at her, he found it harder to tear his eyes away. He knew that what he was doing was creepy and that if Lucy woke up, he'd get the beating of a lifetime, but he couldn't make himself move away.

It was as if he was drawn to her, like a moth to a light.

_You know, _Natsu mused. _She looks pretty cute when she's sleeping. _Natsu smiled.

He felt a strange rising feeling in his stomach, and his face suddenly felt hotter than it did normally.

Natsu decided that he wanted to be the only one that would get to see her like this, in her most vulnerable state.

Natsu _wanted _to be the _only_ one who saw her so happy and free.

* * *

Natsu crawled into the bed later on, when it was dark outside and he had completely eaten her food supply. Turning towards her, he finally fiddled with her hair like he wanted to before.

"Sweet dreams, Lucy," he whispered, closing his eyes.

(He did not add the weird part where he wanted her to be dreaming of _him_.)

* * *

A/N: Oh my gosh, I got way too sidetracked with the end NaLu fluff for the soul. Oh well.

**Question for this chapter (Remember, you get a free drabble!):**

Who actually defeated the Vulcan-Natsu or Lucy?

And since we're nearing 100 reviews (AHMAHGAWSH) I'm gonna give an extra drabble to the hundredth reviewer!

Thank you, and keep reading! (Chapter Seven will go back to Jellal and Erza.)


	7. The Training

An awkward silence hung between Erza and Jellal as they briskly walked along the path toward Fairy Tail.

It had been a few days since their meeting in that small town and the incident in the cafe. Afterward, Erza had convinced Jellal that he should come and visit Fairy Tail, since everybody had been wondering about him. (Which was a lie...Erza was the only one who thought about him.)

While they were good friends, their whole experience so far had been nothing but awkward. They really had nothing to say to each other (What _do _you say to your friend/crush/ally/murderer anyway?) and since nature seemed to keep landing them in suggestive positions (such as Erza bumping into a tree and falling into Jellal, and Jellal tripping over a rock and landing on top of Erza) it seemed like karma _wanted _to get them together.

Except that wouldn't be happening any time soon, because Erza was completely unsure of how to approach this _feminine concept _and Jellal was not very smart on this _romantic _front.

* * *

Erza and Jellal sat around the blazing campfire, not speaking.

Jellal coughed. "I guess I'll turn in now."

Erza nodded. "I'll watch then."

Jellal raised an eyebrow. "These are completely safe parts."

Erza shrugged. "Better safe than sorry."

Jellal chuckled, thinking of how _Erza _that was before settling into his sleeping bag. "Wake me up then in a few hours to take over."

Erza grunted in response, and Jellal quickly escaped into a slumber in which he dreamed of himself proposing to Erza.

* * *

Jellal woke up with a start, gasping. His wonderful dream of marriage with Erza had somehow morphed into a flashback of the Tower in Heaven, and there was no way he was going through that again.

Propping himself on his elbows, he saw the dying embers of their fire flying solemnly into the air. As his vision cleared, he found Erza, who had nodded off against the tree she had been sitting against.

Jellal softly chuckled, crawling out of his sleeping bag to sit on a rock and take over his shift. It was just like Erza to not wake him up for his turn.

He sighed, smiling. He might not be marrying Erza anytime soon, but just spending time with her like this was fine too.

* * *

Levy panted, trudging far behind Gajeel. Her feet hurt every time they hit the beaten down path, and the harsh sunlight wasn't helping.

"Gajeel," she whined, wiping the sweat off her brow. "How long?"

"We're almost there," he said. "Don't tell me that you're already tired."

Levy bit her lip, trying in a vain attempt to make her panting softer. She didn't want to look weak in front of him; and, the reason she came along in the first place was to get stronger, right?

A few minutes later, Levy heard something very faint...it sounded like the pounding of millions of feet, and it was getting louder.

"Come on!" Gajeel suddenly broke into a run.

"What? No!" Levy exclaimed, dashing behind him. Her energy quickly depleted though, and soon enough, she was leaning on a rock and gasping for breath.

"You can't be serious." She heard Gajeel's condescending tone behind her, and slumped. Under normal circumstances, she would have shot back a defensive retort, but now, she was just so tired from climbing the mountain to do anything at all.

Gajeel groaned when he saw her not moving. With a swift movement, he picked up the petite girl and placed her on his back. He then began to jog, with Levy protesting on his back.

"I can run myself!" Levy said with a pout, hoping that he would think her blush was because of the heat and strain rather than him.

"From what I just saw, I'd think not," he replied, and Levy instantly felt bad for being such a feeble burden.

She couldn't even hike up the hill. How was she ever going to win in a fight?

* * *

"You're finally here," Pantherlily said, casting the smallest glance at Levy, who was on top of Gajeel's taught back. She slid off, mumbling a thanks, before looking up in awe.

"So _this _is where you train..." she whispered, staring up at the beautiful waterfall, thundering down from the heights above into a small pool in front of her. Around it was a grove of lush apple trees, and the mist from the waterfall veiled everything in a magical, cool air.

"It's beautiful," she said.

"We've got a lot to do. You can admire the scenery later," Gajeel interrupted, setting down his pack.

Levy looked over her shoulder at him. "Are you serious? We just got here."

"Exactly. How far can you go?"

Levy stayed silent, biting her lip. How far _could _she go?

"Sit with me." Gajeel sat himself underneath the heavy waterfall, the barrels of water beating onto his bare shoulders.

Levy looked at him as if he was crazy. "What the heck are you doing?"

Gajeel opened one of his eyes and shot her an angry glare. "What does it look like I'm dong? I'm sitting under the waterfall to test my stamina."

Levy nodded, narrowing her eyebrows. _Could_ she do it? _Would_ she do it?

Levy sighed, a smile tugging at her lips. She walked over to the water, tied up her aqua hair, and settled herself next to Gajeel on the rock.

"Ah!" The waterfall pounded on her shoulders, and she sagged under the weight. "It hurts!"

"Sit up straight. Don't let it get the better of you," Gajeel said.

"But it's hard," she replied, the cold water thundering down onto her neck. She couldn't stand much more of this.

"You have to get stronger. Push yourself." A large hand placed its self in the small of her back and hoisted her straight up, so she was sitting rigidly like a wall of rock under the waterfall.

Levy suddenly felt very hot under the cold water. Gajeel was touching her, and she had never imagined it would feel that good.

"Stay like that." His hand left her, and Levy inwardly moaned.

Levy closed her eyes, and forced all of her willpower into a big ball. _I _will _sit under this waterfall. I _will_ show Gajeel that I'm not weak. I _will _get stronger._

Tensing up her muscles, she focused on her ears, making sure to hear the sound of every single drop of water landing on her. Suddenly, it wasn't a deafening roar anymore; instead, it was a deluge of little droplets.

She could hear many things - her heartbeat, Gajeel's so-light-it-wasn't-really-there panting, Pantherlily's tail thumping on the rock.

She could hear herself think too. _This...isn't so hard._

_I _am _strong._

* * *

Erza and Jellal walked into Magnolia. The birds chirped, the fluffy clouds floated, and Erza's skirt ruffled in the breeze.

And that wasn't good for Jellal.

Jellal, who was a few steps behind her, couldn't avoid seeing flashes of _what was underneath _every time the wind decided to play with her skirt. It was killing Jellal on the inside, and he wasn't sure how much more he could take before he jumped her.

Erza was amazing, and he knew he couldn't let her walk away from him much longer.

* * *

"Erza." He now walked beside her, inwardly sighing. He wouldn't have to deal with seeing her panties anymore. "Any idea where I can stay?"

Erza thought for a moment. "There's a fairly decent hotel close to the guild. I'll take you there."

As they walked, Jellal had an uncontrollable urge to put his arm around her. He was tired, after all these years, of having her close enough to touch, but just out of his reach. He had to let her know.

He considered the consequences. She would either accept the gesture as friendly, a romantic move, or beat him senseless.

Jellal was going to take his chances.

Forcing his hand to stop twitching, he _casually _draped an arm around Erza's shoulders. He looked the other way, trying not to look to obvious.

He felt her shoulders tense, and he silently pleaded that he would make it out alive.

However, she relaxed again, and Jellal thought it okay to steal a glance at her.

She was smiling.

Jellal smiled too, shaking his head. It seemed like _both _of them were hopeless.

* * *

A/N: Awkward endings are the best. Excuse me for the abnormally late update, real life kind of caught up to me.

**Question for a drabble!**

**What was Jellal dreaming about earlier on in the chapter?**

Thank you for staying with me! Also, please check out my new Fairy Tail NaLu drabble collection, Deep Breaths, if you like my writing!

So stay tuned, since the next chapter will go back to Wendy's boy problems and the rest of the guild!


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